Wendy, A fascinating poem that is endless to meditation. Really deep in its implications . . . the body and its “angel,” or spirit? This one just engenders reflection. Thanks for writing and posting this.

Wendy, I started to say I like this poem, but I”m not sure those words are right. Not that I dislike it. It makes me wonder how the women did it, over and over.

“taste honey sweet off a waxen comb crafted by bees humming their own Salve Regina”..I have done that and heard the hive humming when the queen is right.
Thank you for the details..”the masonry of seed and loam, the slow fade of sin.” I learned to value work: it keeps the body busy.
Thank you for this poem.
ptc

Thank you all so much for taking the time to read and comment on this poem. Your wonderful comments are very much appreciated! This poem came about after reading a fascinating article on the monks/hermits of the early 5th and 6th centuries who traveled into the wild landscape of the Hebrides islands off the coast of Britain/Scotland seeking to purify their souls and connect more closely to God through nature. One of their absolute goals was to separate the mind/heart from the human influence of the ego. I am not even sure myself fully what this poem means; but I was thinking of the man secluded in the middle of nowhere and wrestling with the temptation to give into other desires, pride, feelings of accomplishment, etc. In his hungry/spare state of existence, he hallucinates and sees temptation, his expelled ego, as a feminine entity, like Eve coaxing/tempting Adam to the taste the apple. He hears her speak, letting her say all the things that have made him holy/humble and then forces her to admit she must perish only lingering long enough to realize the inevitability of her passing. Again, I deeply appreciate all of you taking the time to read and comment on this poem!

The poor temptress/ego that must be abandoned
from the human being.
Not an easy thing to do.
Love the details, the sound and images
of the humble life they will now try and lead.
Will politics and trying to be the most humble
still make them fail?